Every week I go to the comic book store (Comics Ink in Culver City, CA, hey Steve and Jason!) and grab a lot of comics. I sort these into two piles -- the "buy" pile (things I intend to spend money on, most often a small pile) and the "read" pile (often huge, including lots of stuff I don't actually like but wanna stay well informed about). In no particular order, here's some thoughts about all that.

Astro City: Local Heroes #2:
I can understand why Busiek takes so much time with this title. The layers and characterization in this issue are amazing -- it's easily the finest issue of the week. Taking equal parts Superman and Dr. Manhattan, this issue takes the Silver Age Lois Lane mythos and kicks it in the face. Then it shoves it to the ground, kicks it in the stomach, steals its lunch money, and talks about its momma. The story takes some twists and turns, which I will of course not share with you, but when I was done, I sat the issue down and said, "wow," before immediately reading it again. Fine, fine standalone issue.

Black Panther #57:
This ain't your father's T'Challa ... but it's not exactly yours either. J. Torres does a fairly energetic Christopher Priest impersonation, which makes this issue a bit less jarring for the recent Kasper Cole converts and still familiar for the "I'm Getting Ahead Of Myself" crowd from issues #1-49. The politics here are fairly clear-cut, but the real story worth mentioning here is the art by Ryan Bodenheim and Walden Wong -- one of the crispest, most attractive books on the stand this week. The two page spread with a rebellion in a Dakenia (another African nation) is striking. There's misstepps, sure -- Ross' eyes don't line up when he first drops his shades, and T'Challa's face looks pinched once in a while, but overall this is one amazing artistic performance. I understand that (I believe) Bodenhem is a contest winner. I can see why. This kid is going places. The story is kind of boucny and fun -- not Enemy of the State, but not a Deadpool-esque shift either -- and I enjoyed it, despite my comics pusher expecting me to shoot somebody.

Venture #3:
This book is great -- Jay Faerber and Jamal Igle are crafting a really captivating yet low impact superhero tale. Igle draws a convincing LA, capturing its north and west sides well (the Santa Monica scene is spot on) and the tension between the leads is masterfully balanced. In my opinion, this is the most consistently entertaining of Image's "superhero line" (Firebreather is a close second, although I wouldn't call it a "superhero" book at all). It won't move you like Astro City but it's damned fine at what it does.

Grendel: God & Devil #3:
The depth of the insanity in the Grendel Mythos continues to find new depths, as this issue takes a look at the "mystery Grendel" that immediately preceded Orian Assante's rise and asks some hard questions about traditional perceptions of the nature of divinity. This is not exactly the easy reading of Venture, but it's a very rewarding read that I'm finding a great supplement to the Grendel meta-story. I don't know how well it reads to people who aren't well versed in Grendel lore.

Marvel Universe: The End #3:
The laughs I've been getting for the last two months are fewer and farther in between this month. Dr. Doom shows the kind of thinking which makes him the fanboy favorite. "So, you were just a normal guy, got kidnapped by aliens, and then became all powerful. Well, I've got this time machine, so I'm just gonna go back to about five minutes before you get snatched and bust a cap in your ass!" The outcome of this is great comedy, and the "Imperial Guard" of the mad pharoah consisting of Crusher Creel and his boys beating the hell out of the B-list masks that survived the last two issues. Still, there's a whole lotta standing around, posting and postulating in this issue. Since it's all doomed (that's the idea of the thing), it's only bittersweet laughs no matter how your slice it. Ehh.

Fables #12:
The caper's afoot, and it's fun. Bigby Wolf is all about keeping secrets, and a convoluted plot gets the bad boys of the Fables on a mission to handle some dirty business. There's laughs and there's surprises, and of course the crisp and detailed artwork you've come to expect from this title. Part one of a two-parter that's already vastly entertaining.

Star Wars: Empire #7:
This is one of the few disappointments this week. Dark Horse has done a lot of "Boba Fett the Badass Rolls In and Kicks Butt" stories in the past. Enemy of the Empire, Twin Engines of Destruction, Bounty on Bar-Kooda and other stories do it better, and this issue really did nothing for me.

Way of the Rat #12:
The curse of dragons that plagues the border city of Zhumar reaches its conclusion this issue, which also features a bad ending for a lead character, a victory for and a revelation about the Silken Ghost (one of the best visually designed characters I've seen in years), a new governor for the city and the angry snideness you've come to love from Po Po. It's not the grandiose ending that I felt like the series was building up to, but it's still a good issue (if not one of the best in the run).

Gotham Central #6:
Renee Montoya has a secret, but not for long. The mother of all bad days hits the detective this month, as master writer Greg Rucka shows some of the dynamics of the GCPD. There's not a lot of action, but Rucka keeps the book tense and interesting. I can honestly say I'm very interested in what's next.

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #166:
When you screw with the feds, they generally don't respond well to that. The Bat wins his battle to save a little girl -- remember, this is early in his career (I was corrected by the writer, the illustrious and praiseworthy Dwayne McDuffie, who made me note that this is pre-bulletproof cape and probably Robin too), but loses the war with a twist ending that'll make you repeat Chris Rock's Head of State mantra: "that ain't right!" The Bat's confidence is fun to watch as it builds, and this is a fun story, but the shoe I knew would drop is on its way down.

Buy Pile Breakdown: The Panther save made up for the Boba fett snafu, and with the double fisted combo of fun in Venture and Fables and a real moment in Astro City, this was one hell of a good week for the Buy Pile.

Then there's the stuff on the "read pile" that I don't bring home ...

Thor #62:
The keyword for most of Marvel's releases could be "murky" this week. Jurgens is taking a really interesting and deeply personal look at the affects of Asgard basically taking over the Earth. No, no, none of the other books are affected by this. Anyhoo, the thing that's kept this book out of the Buy Pile is that, despite the hereditary right to the throne, Thor is not a smart man. If you need to send somebody into a horde of super strong bruisers engaged in melee combat, there's almost nobody better. But the subtleties of fixing societies? C'mon, dawg. Thor is that sweetheart lineman on your high school football team who took too many hits without a helmet. Great at breaking things. Crappy at fixing 'em. The "cult" that's growing up in his honor is a creepy and logical extension of the story, and it plays out really interestingly in this book (at school and in the media), but I keep waiting for something really, really horrible to happen. Soon. I just hope Jurgens has the guts (and leeway) to go all the way with it (Orion fell from grace way too easily in my mind) and make me buy the whole run in back issues sooner or later.

Blood & Water #2
Still slow going, but very interesting. I almost bought it until I saw "2 of 5." Either it's gonna be collected, or I'll just buy 'em all at the end. I disagree with Winick's take on vampires (it's ... different, actually closer to Blade than anything else), but it's an adequately interesting read so far. I'd sign up for this brand of vampirism in a minute.

Captain America #12:
Remember "murky" as the keyword? Cap is "whiny" and "murky." Did the feds leave Steve in a block of ice to shut up his idealistic whininess? Who can imagine them doing something like that? (sarcasm, children). Every time I read this title -- beautifully drawn, admittedly -- I realize how much more logical and impressive a character Ultimate Captain America has become in just a few years. Same basic thesis. Ultimate Cap understands who he is -- a weapon, an instrument of policy -- and MU Cap bristles against it. Namor appears here, being very traditionally Namor and whupping ass, and he even clowns Cap. Cap ... I'm embarrased. This guy is the LL Cool J of comics -- please, somebody, anybody, put him out of his misery. Mine too, while you're at it.

Star Wars #52:
The art here does a disservice to a passably interesting story. The illogic of a third Sith is never addressed, and the best character in the story is a Jango Fett clone. This book is completely off the rails.

Human Torch #1:
If this book were half as good as Firebreather, which covers some of the same material, it would be a real accomplsihment. Not only is this title endlessly cliche, it's goofy looking and dull-witted. Blah.

Iron Man #67:
The story -- Chinese consulate bombed with a weapon culled from Stark technology, international incident afoot -- is complicated. This issue, part of the transition from Grell to Laws, does nothing to lessen that complexity. Tony has a lot going on, and things don't look good for our young hero. Honestly, I think there's too many plates spinning for this to work, especially changing writers in mid-story, and this issue did nothing to enthrall me. Complicated and murky.

Punisher #24:
Ennis, on Newsarama, said he was gonna get into the dark side of Frank Castle. This is more in that direction -- none of the well-lit goofiness of The Holy or The Russian, nosirree. This book is ugly -- mutilating the homeless, shootouts in the subway, and the grim reality of a serial killer in a skull t-shirt. Rough reading, but satisfying for fans of the grit of the Punisher. I dunno ... I kind of miss some of the Preacher-esque goofiness of Welcome Back, Frank. Grim and murky.

Mystic #35:
This issue was a tired cliffhanger with barely explained motivations and a shift in the premise of the title. No.

Green Arrow #23:
Best said by a man who, allegedly, has every issue of Green Arrow ever made, who was standing in my store. "Mm, this looks like a good point to jump off this book." Cliched hero fight, tired dialogue, blah. 'Nuff said.

Lovebunny & Mr. Hell: Savage Love:
I don't really know what to say about this book. Mr. Hell is ... strangely entertaining. Lovebunny is better characterized than I would have expected. I kind of enjoyed it. Why does that seem wrong? Mmm.

411 #1:
I was very surprised at how well done this was. There's a twist in the story of an Israeli fighter pilot that's simply amazing. The Garth Ennis story is online at Marvel's site, and I like that a lot. The final story, about an Afghan fighter, is good but kind of quiet. A very surprising start from a book I expected nothing of. It's only a three-issue mini, so I'm sure Marvel's new TPB program will have it bound for my convenience posthaste. Thought-provoking and only slightly murky.

Adventures of Superman #615:
More fun (from a certain point of view) with meta-fiction. I swear they're throwing a dart at a board fulla "ideas." Blech.

Read Pile Roundup: Cap and Superman, as always, drag down the Read Pile, but 411 made a real mark. It was an up and down week, but not good enough for anybody to creep into the promised land of me spending money for it.

It was a busy and tumultuous week, but one I enjoyed overall (and spent more than $30 on, yowza).